The Pride Lands
by AnnelieseandDanni
Summary: The beginning. How did the pride that forever ruled Pride Rock came to be? How did they grow and expand their pride without unnecessary killing? With each king that reign, the story grows.
1. Intoduction

_**Hey Lion King Lovers!**_

_**So, I have decided to start my first TLK Fanfic! This is kind of different than the normal writing that I do, but nonetheless, I believe it is still good and quite interesting. **_

_**Instead of your normal Lion King storyline, this fanfic will take you back to the very beginning to the first two lions that started the pride that would forever rule the Pridelands. However along the way, they will experience great turmoil and how the pride spilt into the Pridelanders and the Outsiders. Throughout the entire fanfic, mostly all characters will be Original, but as the story progress, the Cannon characters will enter.**_

_**This story contains: humour, romance, betrayal, violence, drama, and slight dark themes.  
>So with that being said, it will be rated T.<strong>_

_**All of the characters from The Lion King, The Lion King 2 and Books and Comics, will at some point, be in this fanfic.**_

_**I hope you enjoy this story, as much as I have when I wrote it. And please leave reviews, and if it sucks, let me know, that way I can improve coming chapters.**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from the Lion King or the rest of its movies/books/etc. I only claim the ideas for my original characters. **_

_**~Becca **_


	2. Updates

Below will be my current updates on the progression of The Pride Lands, so make sure to check back occasionally to view them!

Updates:  
>October 4th, 2014 : Working on an up-to-date outlook of the characters mentioned in the first chapter. Also, working on Chapter 1 which will be upload either Wednesday or Thursday evening EST time.<p>

October 7th, 2014: Finished the up-to-date outlook of the characters current mentioned in the first chapter, which will be post before Chapter 1. Chapter 1 will be upload either Wednesday or Thursday evening EST time.

October 9th, 2014: Current Character List is posted. **Chapter 1** is also posted.

October 15th, 2014: Working on Chapter 2. Also working on an updated version of the Character Sheet.

October 25th, 2014: Chapter 2 is on a short hiatus. I will try to have it posted next weekend...and maybe Chapter 3. Sorry for the delay.


	3. Character List

**Kaisa**: She is a four year old, light cream lioness with a dark brown tuff of hair on her tail along with her eyes. Her paws, muzzle, underbelly are lighter in contrast than her fur color. She is expecting her first litter of cubs with her mate. Her best friend throughout her lifetime is Zola.

**Kaisa's 1****st**** mate:** He is a six year old, dark brown lion with a thick, long black mane with light green eyes. His paws and muzzle are colorless, dark brown as his fur, and his underbelly a light cream.

**Shani:** She is the only surviving cub of Kaisa's 1st litter. She's a light cream lioness with a dark brown tuff of hair on her tail, however, she takes the light green eyes of her father.

**Zola**: She is a four year old, dark brown lioness with a dark brown tuff of hair on her tail and dark blue eyes. Her paws, muzzle, underbelly are tan. She has had her first litter of cubs at two years old, to a surprisingly six cubs, with her first mate. She is now expecting her second litter from a new male. Her best friend throughout her lifetime is Kaisa.

**Zola's mother**: She is mentioned throughout the story, but she is a dark brown lioness with dark brown tuff of hair on her tail and green eyes.

**Lesedi:** She is two and half years old and she the daughter of Zola from her first litter. She is dark brown with a dark brown tuff of hair on her tail and dark blue eyes like her mother. Her paws, muzzle, underbelly are in contrast than her fur color.

**Nsia**: He is a surprise cub of Zola's. As the story unfolds, so does his. His is a dark brown male with a thick black mane and dark blue eyes.

**Ime:** She is the only daughter of Zola's 2nd litter. She is a dark brown lioness with blue eyes like her mother.


	4. Chapter 1: Leave At Dusk

Dark clouds rolled over the distant horizon bringing with it whipping winds and pouring rains. Animals tilted their heads toward the semi-blue skies, for the time being, and ran in the opposite direction seeking shelter from the horrible weather that was already underway. Unfortunately for two lionesses, instead of seeking shelter, along with their pride from the upcoming storm, they were on their way across the Sahara to peacefully give birth to their unborn cubs. Earlier that day, both lionesses searched for a perfect place to create a den away from their pride and dangerous animals that would kill their offspring. As they pushed forward, the skies released the water that it had held thus far, soaking the two females. They shortly reached their den and entered quickly and swiftly.  
>"Kaisa, I'm surprised that we were able to get here so quickly." The dark brown lioness said lying down in the back of the cave-like den.<br>"You're right, Zola. I was actually expecting us to give birth right out there in the desert during the rain storm."  
>Kaisa was a strong female born from a powerful pride. She had light cream fur and a light brown tuff of fur on her tail. As she lay down beside her best friend, she let out a long yawn and then closed her dark brown eyes deciding to get some rest before the big moment. Beside her, Zola continued to stare ahead at the exit of the den, watching the rain pound into the earth. Zola was experience with cubs unlike her friend. She had given birth once before to a litter of six cubs. Sadly however, her mate at the time thought of females as weak and undeserving of living, so he killed all but one. After this altercation, she left her pride and rejoined her true family, the pride she originally came from. Now she was expecting another cub, but not with the same male as Kaisa. She refused to mate with her best friend's mate so she found herself one that wasn't looking for any type of power or commitment. Uncertain on how many she would bare this time, she couldn't wait to see the little bundle of joy nuzzle against her fur.<p>

Hours went by and finally Kaisa went into labor. The pain in her lower abdomen was excruciating and shortly after feeling it, she gave birth to three light cream-colored little cubs. After cleaning each one, she nuzzled them closer to her and noticed that all of them were females. Excited about her cubs, she couldn't help but be worried that her mate would be displeased. He was strongly hoping for a male heir, but with her giving birth to three little girls, would he approve of them? She drew in a deep breath and glanced over to her best friend.  
>"I had three girls…" Kaisa whispered, mostly from being out of breath. "I just hope that he accepts them…"<br>The brown lioness raised her head as her own pain began. "…you don't think…he'll keep them?"  
>Before Kaisa could answer, the den filled with a lower growl and shortly afterwards, soft mews. Zola had given birth to one single cub, a dark brown female.<p>

Things went silent for awhile except for the soft mews every once and awhile that could be heard from the four small cubs. Both lioness were extremely tired, but with a loud roar coming from outside, Kaisa knew that she had present her cubs to her mate. She slowly got up and grabbed all three cubs with her mouth and carried them outside of the den to let her massive mate see them. Once outside, she lowered all three down to the ground as the five hundred pound dark brown male peered down at the little life mewing down at his paws. His green eyes went over all three and a snarl left his muzzle, "…females…all of them?" Kaisa nodded slowly, her eyes shifting back and forth between her mate and her three helpless cubs. She knew that if he decided to 'get rid' of them, she wouldn't stand a chance against the powerful beast, but she would have to try. Her claws sprang forth and she buried them down into the moist soil as if she was anchoring down for battle. The male before her lowered his head down taking a quick sniff before picking all three little bodies upward. He turned around and headed back toward the pride.  
>"W-where are you taking them?" Kaisa panicked.<br>He turned around for a mere second, his eyes narrowed and his muzzle barley moving, "To dispose of this useless trash." All the color from Kaisa's face drained out. She knew exactly what he had planned to do to her cubs…and she refused to just stand by and let him kill them. She ran passed him, standing in his way with her fangs bared. She lunged at him but he quickly lifted his front paw and slapped her face. She went down but that didn't' matter to her. All that did was her young cubs that were clenched in his teeth. Time after time, she would get to her feet and lunge at him but was only to be knocked back down again. Sadly however, the last time that she lunged at him, he clawed her face, knocking her down hard. He ran off from her before she could get her senses back and up to her feet.

When she finally did, she ran in the direction that her mate did, but was stopped in her tracks. She trotted over to the soft mounds on the dirt and lowered her head down to them. Her eyes swelled and tears streamed down her cheeks. Below her were lifeless bodies that had broken necks. Her nose tapped the first cub but no movement as the second one. Her eyes shifted to the male responsible of her cubs' death and saw a smirk upon his face.  
>"Kaisa…it was for the best." He said looking down at the limp cubs. "Now that you don't have cubs anyone, we can mate again in about a week. Now come, let's go home."<br>Kaisa narrowed her eyes and snorted, "H-how d-dare you!? They were _our_ babies! I'm not going anywhere with you! My friend has given birth and I'm staying with her."  
>"Fine…but be warned. If you're not back by sunset, your <em>friend<em> will wish that she never knew you." He turned and walked away, leaving Kaisa to tend to her dead cubs. She picked both of them up and decided that she would give them a decent burial. She would find some type of tree trunk or some hollow substance to place them in. As she walked back toward the den, she noticed that her mate took all three cubs, but only two were dead. She hurried back and placed the two cubs on the ground and sniffed the ground for the familiar smell of her cub. As she searched she heard a soft mew coming a few feet away. She followed the sound and there in the tall grass was her third cub. She appeared fine, just a bit cold from being out in the open. She picked her up and took her back inside the den.

Zola raised her head and looked at her friend as she slowly came back inside. Her own cub was nuzzled against her fur and she could sense that something was wrong with Kaisa. "Kaisa…what's wrong?"

The cream lioness dropped the newborn softly down against the soil of the den and sat down, "H…he killed them…all…except for her…" Kaisa's eyes were wide and tears streamed down her face and Zola knew how much pain her best friend was in. Losing a cub was painful enough, but losing more, it about took all of your mental and emotional being. "Where are the other two?"  
>Kaisa tilted her head toward the direction outside the cave. "I need to go and bury them somehow. Could you watch over her, please?"<br>"Of course…take your time, Kaisa." With a nod, Kaisa turned on her heel and headed back to bury her two cubs. She knew that Zola would watch over her little baby until she returned. Once outside, she took one last glance at the two lifeless bodies before picking them up and leaving the den behind her. How she hated to leave her dead cubs, but they were just that…dead. There was no way they could come back from the dead and prance around again.

She traveled what seemed like miles to a broken tree trunk and quickly looked side-to-side for any hungry animals that could easily devour her cubs as a snack. Without any motion, she slowly dropped both bodies in the dense hole and pulled a few small branches over the hole to help hide them. Sitting down in front of the trunk, she held her head down, tears falling down on to her paws.

**Meanwhile,** Zola continued to nuzzle against both young cubs and noticed that her little one had bright brown spots all over her fur. None of her other cubs that she bared before had any, but it was amazing that this little one did. Her stomach pinched and she knew that soon she would have to leave and find some type of food for herself. She hated to leave before Kaisa returned, so she decided to wait just a little longer. Her eyes flicked at the entrance of the den and noticed that the sun was starting to set for the day and it would soon be dark. She tilted her ear to the soft movements on the other side of the entrance. She narrowed her eyes as her nostrils flared back and forth. She would be prepared to attack whatever dared come down the narrow passage. Her eyes softened when she saw two familiar faces, but quickly turned to panic.  
>"Lesedi! Nsia! W-what h-happened!?" Zola exclaimed as both older cubs approached her covered in bloods and wounds.<p>

Lesedi was the only surviving cub of Zola's first litter. She was dark brown like her mother and no resemblance of her father whatsoever. Her body was lean and strong and she was beginning to learn how to manage on her own. Instead of being perky like usual, she was quite shaken up, covered in head to toe in blood. As for Nsia, he was the only male cub that Zola cared for when he was only days old. Now, he was the same age as Lesedi except for the fact that his black mane was already growing and spreading down his chest that was now covered in blood.  
>Lesedi hurried to her mother's side and nuzzled against her neck as if she was only a small infant, "Mom…the pride was attacked…"<br>Zola's eyes widen from the sudden shock and flicked her line of vision to Nsia. "Is this true?" Nsia nodded, swallowing hard before saying, "Yes…by two rouge lions…they destroyed everything…killing off the other cubs and any females that questioned them…"  
>Zola closed her eyes and softly sobbed along with her children, "W-what about the King?" When no answer came, she knew that the two lions overcame him and killed him. She could only imagine how Kaisa would take it when she found out. Would she be happy that her mate was dead, or would she fall into a deeper depression?<p>

**Elsewhere**, Kaisa dried up her tears and stood to her feet. She drew in a deep breath and slowly exhaled it as she moved across the Sahara back to her pride. She had to face her mate so he would not harm Zola and the two cubs. She had to present herself as if all of her hope and dreams vanished as soon as he broke the two little cubs' necks. As she inched toward the pride, she noticed the faint smell of blood filled the air. She ducked downward and carefully moved closer toward her pride. Planting her feet and peeking around a bush, she saw puddles of blood surrounding her fellow friends. Out of a pride of ten females, she only saw four standing. She quickly scanned the area and didn't see the two familiar faces that belonged to Zola's cubs. She maneuvered around the area, hiding behind the small evergreen until she was able to get close enough to the lioness. "Psshh….hey…"  
>A tan lioness cut her head in the direction of Kaisa and moved closer, "Queen Kaisa…I see you're safe. You need to get out of here before you are bounded here."<br>"What do you mean? Where's my mate?"  
>The lioness closed her eyes and spoke softly, "He's dead…the two lions that bombarded us, doubled teamed him and…" she hushed for a moment before speaking again, "His body's over there. Queen Kaisa…if you see Lesedi and Nsia, tell them to run…those males will be searching for them in the morning…"<br>"I will if I see them, but what about you and the other lionesses? You should come with us!? Runaway from here!"  
>"We can't! If we do, they will come for all of us and surely kill your cubs! We will be fine…go before it's too late!" The lioness exclaimed.<p>

Kaisa ducked back into the bushes and quickly moved toward her mate's body. She glimpsed the two males that the lioness spoke of feeding on her mate's corpse. Getting sick to her stomach, she backed away and slowly made her way away from her pride, running all the way back to the den. She had to warn Zola and hoped that Lesedi and Nsia were there; and if not, she had to search for them quickly so they could leave the area before becoming targets. "Zola!"She yelled as she entered into the den, noticing that Lesedi and Nsia were inside. Thankfully they were there and not dead elsewhere. "Thank goodness! I was so worried. I saw what the other lions did to the pride and to my mate."  
>Zola shifted to a standing position, both cubs mewing for warmth, "I'm so sorry what happened…" Kaisa gave her best friend a quick smile and said, "It's okay…but we cannot stay here! We have to move…or we are doomed. The males will hunt for Lesedi and Nsia in the morning and I'm afraid that their penalty will be death. We have to go now!" All of the older lions looked at each other and with a nod, they all agreed. Kaisa took in a deep breath and said, "<strong>We leave at dusk<strong>."


End file.
